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The panel lights turned green. I turned the knob and pulled open the door. I hesitated for a few seconds and listened for footsteps or shouting.
“Silent alarms were knocked out when the nearby transformer accidentally blew and knocked out the neighborhood’s power,” Jensen assured me.
I pulled out my pen light to inspect the safe’s contents. A couple of stacks of cash, a brick of something that was probably cocaine or heroin. None of that was on my warrant or my wish list. There were a few documents, though. I pulled out the papers and spotted a small, square metal disk they’d been covering. “I think I have the remaining hard drive.”
This time, Jensen walked me through affixing the plastic disk, which had to be placed very precisely on this particular device.
“Got it,” he announced, followed seconds later by, “Fuck me.”
I didn’t like the sound of that. “Problem?”
“Not for long, I hope.” He tapped on his keyboard so hard, I could hear it through my comms. “Embedded firewall. This must have some super-sensitive shit on it, given the level of complexity.” He was silent except for his typing for another minute.
I scanned the documents. Nothing earth-shattering, but I snapped pictures of them with my phone, transferred them to Alder, and then deleted them.
“Shit,” Jensen muttered.
I didn’t interrupt him again, but I glanced at my watch. I switched over to the private comms between Penn and me. “How’s my time looking?”
“Not good. I want you out of there in two minutes.”
I pressed my lips together. No need to argue until it was absolutely necessary.
“I can hear you thinking,” Penn said, “and while I’m not the boss of you, I’m strongly advising you get your ass out of there in one minute and fifty-five seconds.”
“More bad news,” Jensen said on the main channel. “This is not a quick job.”
I could hear multiple expletives in my ear. “How long?”
“Could be as long as an hour,” Jensen answered.
“That guard will be awake in the next ten minutes,” Penn said on the main channel.
“I can tranq him again,” I said. “Multiple times, if necessary.”
“You don’t have enough darts with you to buy an hour,” Bond said.
I stared down at the hard drive that was about to derail our operation. “I’ll go with the good old-fashioned knockout, then. I’ll stay as long as it takes.”
“Not advisable,” Kessler chimed in. “The satellite infrared shows a handful of guards moving off the perimeter and toward the house. They’re probably going to do a sweep.”
“Alder, stop looping and go back to live on the security feeds so you can watch for them,” I said. “Let me know when it gets critical.”
“Goddamnit, this is too dangerous,” Penn growled, then went quiet.
He was right, and I was wrong, but it didn’t matter. I was still the boss, and stupid call or not, it was mine alone to make.
16
Ashlee
My sojourn outside of the guest room had been brief. Finding Luka’s office—not the real one where TJ was searching for all his secrets, but the one where he did his cover job of interior design work—was a quick and easy task. During the team meetings this past week, I’d memorized every inch of the house plans that Penn and Sparks had procured, although I hadn’t mentioned that to anyone.
I knew exactly where TJ was, as well, based on the schematics. I knew how long hacking Luka’s electronics was supposed to take, so I realized how close I’d cut it. But I’d gotten what I’d come for. I fiddled with the mini recorder’s tiny tape, then slipped the recorder back into my bag. Luka knew I’d brought it with me in case I had any follow-up questions for the human-interest piece. The man’s ego showed no bounds, and his underestimation of me seemed bottomless. I didn’t even let his attitude piss me off, though, because it made my job easier and would make revenge that much sweeter.
I searched in my jewelry bag for the tiny, nearly invisible comms unit Jensen had given me. I tapped it to life and slipped it into my ear.
Kessler immediately spoke to me. “Ashlee, are you okay? Why were you dark?”
